The Laguna Beach Community Land Trust (LBCLT) is a newly formed non profit organization dedicated to addressing Laguna Beach’s housing affordability challenges. By acquiring and stewarding property for the long-term benefit of the community, we ensure that homes, businesses, and artist work/live spaces remain permanently affordable for artist workspace and low- and moderate-income residents. Established with support from the City of Laguna Beach, we focus on shared equity models, ground leases, and community-driven development to preserve the unique character of our coastal city.

Top 5 Reasons to support Laguna Beach Community Land Trust

The recent acquisition of two properties in Laguna Canyon (at 2307 and 2535 Laguna Canyon Road, totaling around 25 units) through the Laguna Beach Community Land Trust demonstrates how a CLT can secure and maintain below-market-rate work space and housing for artists. In a high-cost area like Laguna Beach, preserves affordable work space for local artists, prevents displacement and keeps creative live/work opportunities viable amid rising property values.

Laguna Beach’s identity as an artist colony relies on affordable spaces for creators. The 2026 purchases were explicitly aimed at preserving artist work space and housing in the canyon. This CLT model ensures long-term stewardship so these assets aren’t lost to market speculation or luxury development in future deals.

With recent canyon properties successfully transferred to the CLT (via city bridge loans and grants), the model has proven effective for intervening in the market. For potential future purchases—whether additional canyon parcels, senior and workforce housing sites, or open-space-adjacent land—a CLT allows the community to acquire and hold property permanently for affordability, avoiding escalation driven by private buyers.

The CLT framework (established in 2024 and operational by 2026) is designed for community-oriented uses, including housing for seniors, essential workers, and
general affordability. Recent canyon successes set a precedent for using it to address wider housing challenges and preserve community assets in Laguna Canyon and beyond.

Unlike traditional ownership, a CLT can hold property in perpetuity and can separate land ownership (held in trust) from building improvements, with resale formulas that keep units affordable perpetually.

This has already worked for the new artist properties and positions the community to safeguard future acquisitions against gentrification or loss of affordability. The Laguna Beach CLT’s recent milestone with the canyon properties shows the model works here—building on it for potential future purchases would further strengthen housing security, artistic vitality, and community control in one of Orange County’s most expensive markets.